Life 101
by The Awesome Novice Writer
Summary: James only wanted the best for his daughter. But in a place ruled by totalitarianism, brutal security, and a dysfunctional society, things aren't what they could be. Still... It's better than the wasteland.
1. Chapter 1

"Almost there."

That's what James Bilotta breathed out as he steadily walked up the uneven dirt trail that lead up to Vault 101, the place he had been journeying towards ever since his daughter had been born. "Almost there."

His feet were still a little sore from his journey, even after the short rest he had gotten. But as his flashlight showed the door at the top of the hill, he continued on. It wasn't much further now.

And though he was relived to see the door made of aged and rotted wood less then a hundred meters away from him, he wasn't saying it to himself as much as he was saying it to the one that was being cradled in his left arm.

The infant, not yet even a month old, was sleeping soundly in his arm, and he tried his best to keep her that way as he walked towards the vault entrance in the surrounding darkness. His only companion being the flashlight that he had brought with him. Besides his daughter of course.

The cone beam sliced through the darkness and guided him through the rough terrain. Without it, he would of bumped into every boulder and log that was in the way of his destination.

As James climbed the hill, he though of how he had left everything behind to reach the one true safe haven from the Capital Wasteland. He had left Project Purity behind and left with his child soon after his wife had died giving birth to said child.

He knew that traveling the wasteland with a child by himself was dangerous, so he had a friend of his escort him all the way to Megaton before they parted ways. He was grateful for her help, knowing that he might not of survived the entire journey without her aid.

The wasteland was full of hellish dangers that didn't stop short of radiation and raiders. There were far worse things out there then just them.

Which was why he needed to get into that vault. He needed to keep his kid away from everything that was bad in the world. He knew that the vault wasn't going to be perfect, far from it, but he did know that it was better then what was outside of it.

James didn't know if his plan was going to work or not, but he had to try. If there was a chance that it was going to work, he'd take it. He needed to at least try. For her.

James made it up to the top of the dirt path and pushed open the rotting door that had somehow survived two hundred years of abuse, hoping for the miracle that he wanted.

* * *

Overseer Almodovar was casually typing on the keyboard of his terminal, updating his reports on how the vault was functioning, when he noticed that one of the normally non-active security cameras had suddenly came alive.

According to his maintenance crew, the security cameras only came alive when someone, or something, was actively close to them. So if what they said was true, there was someone in one of the usually non-active areas of the vault.

Curiosity took control over him as he decided to check out what was happening in that area.

Stopping his work in progress, he clicked on the icon before the moving image of a man in a lab coat standing outside the vault entrance became clear. Or as clear as the night vision camera would allow.

He saw that the man outside of his vault was filthy, to say that least. His white lab coat over a simple white shirt, faded green pants, and black boots were all streaked with dirt and grime. His brown hair was messy with thick strands hanging in front of his face. And his face looked as if it hadn't been shaved in around a week.

He was also holding a child in one of his arms. The other arm was actively hitting the solid door that blocked him from the inside of Vault 101.

The man looked like he was saying something. And just out of curiosity, the overseer added sound to the moving picture on his terminal screen.

"-Know someone's in there." The man called out. He was loud enough that he could be heard, but seemed to be trying to keep his voice down. Most likely to stop his kid from waking up. "I also know that you can hear me."

Overseer Almodovar leaned back on his chair, placed his hands behind his head, and proceeded to see this man beg for entrance into the vault, just like so many before him had done. "I request entrance into Vault 101 along with my child. We have traveled far and are in need of shelter."

Almodovar had heard the same thing from nearly everyone that had traveled to the vault. He heard their pleading and begging and desperation to get inside to escape what was out there in the wasteland. He had rejected many before this man, and he knew that this man wasn't going to be the last one that was going to be disappointed.

The overseer wasn't going to open the entrance for anyone. It was his responsibility to keep the vault residents in and keep them in, and keeping anyone that wasn't a vault resident out.

What made this wastelander think that he was any different from the other wasteland scavengers that seeked asylum? What made him so special that he should be granted entrance into the vault?

Almodovar continued to watch the man plead with him, saying how the wastes were no place for a child, to think of the dangers of the outside, how he could live with himself for not saving those in need. The man even tried to pull his heart strings by making him think of his own new born child.

They had no effect on him. He had seen and heard it all before. "I'm a scientist." The outsider then called out.

It was at that moment that the overseer's curiosity peaked up even more. Normally those that requested entrance were half dead beggars that had nothing to offer. But this man. This man was different. He actually had something valuable to offer. "I'm skilled with using terminals and medicine."

Almodovar stopped leaning back and started to lean forward, looking at the man on his terminal screen. "I can be someone that can maintain your terminals, someone that can repair computerized devices. Or I could take care of your sick and wounded. A doctor, or physician if you prefer."

It was then that he started thinking of how much the vault was in need of a new physician.

The old one had passed away years ago, and no one was getting physician as a result of their G.O.A.T test. The best anyone could do was simple first aid that involved nothing more then putting on a bandage.

The some residences tried to learn some less familiar medical methods, but none of them seemed to be succeeding anymore then the next person. If anything, it just made the situation worse due to them not studying what they were truly good at, causing the vault to lose some otherwise skilled workers. "Grant me and my daughter entrance, and you will get both a scientist and a physician." The man told him.

The vault had no need for scientists, as it already had a couple within its walls. But what the vault really needed was a physician. The vault didn't need anymore sick people then it already had, and if sickness were to spread around like a plague, then the entire vault population would be doomed.

Not only that, but there were always injuries from falls, cuts, burns, fights, and most of all, radroach attacks.

The overseer had made the vault philosophy that no one ever enters the vault, and no one ever leaves. He believed in that philosophy strongly, but this outsider was needed. He was very much needed.

The vault needed this man.

Overseer Almodovar, who always put the thought of the vault before anything else, scrolled through his terminal options before finding the one that would open up the vault door.

He checked the security cameras that were installed within the vault, and saw that everyone was still asleep except for him and the security guards that continued to patrol the hallways. Nobody was near the entrance but him and the soon to be new residents.

* * *

James waited for an answer, fearing that the worst was happening.

He worried that he wouldn't gain entrance into the vault, despite everything that he had to offer them. It was all he could do. Plead and offer and hope that the one in control would allow him and his daughter inside. He wondered if he and his child would end up like the many skeletons that littered the ground at their feet.

Those piles of bones, the remains of people that seeked the inside of the vault, only to be denied entrance and left to their fate.

The stale air around him smelt and tasted of death. A smell and taste he was so used to, but didn't want to think about at the moment.

He looked over at his child and saw that she was still asleep in his arm. None of his yelling and pounding had awoken her. He was glad about that much at least.

It was then that the loud hiss of air, followed by a high pitched squeal of metal grinding on metal occurred that sounded like it would reach the heavens occurred, causing James to cringe and the baby to awaken.

James had expected as much, and a fraction of a second before his new born started to wail, he started to gently rock her back and forth, telling her that everything was going to be all right. And he believed it as well. Everything was going to be all right. They managed to get someone to open up for them, and they were going to be living in Vault 101. A place away from the dangers of the Capital Wasteland.

As the heavy and aged steel door with the large yellow text of the numbers: 101, started to circle away and seemed to move into the stone wall to his left, James noticed something that was rare in the Capital Wasteland. A clean room.

The room in front of him was a plain grey with grates for floors, and what looked like square shipping crates, but it was still a sight for James. Inside the room in front of him were lights that were of mediocre strength at best. Enough to light up the room, but that was it.

James, as excited as he was that he was getting into the legendary Vault 101, turned his attention back to his crying infant as he rocked her gently as he slowly walked into the safe haven. His boots left heavy dirt prints on the polished grates.

The child had just quieted down when James suddenly heard an authoritative voice start shouting at him.

James hadn't heard anyone come in, nor had he heard the footsteps, but as he looked up, he saw a man that wore a black Kevlar vest over a jumpsuit that was a shade darker then blue. The pant legs were tucked into polished black combat boots. An extendable baton was holstered on the left side of the large vest. He wore a riot helmet with a clear visor over his face. But what James couldn't help but notice was the bulky weapon pointed right at him. "I'll ask again! How the fuck did you get in here?"

James didn't dare move now. He was helpless. His own weapon had ran out of ammunition long ago. James had then traded in the weapon for caps when he had reached Megaton, enough for a couple hours rest and one final wasteland meal.

But even if he had his weapon with him, he wouldn't of pulled it out anyway, not with his child in his arm.

James held his daughter tighter as he got over the shock of having a weapon pointed at his body.

"Someone let me in." He answered as calmly as he could, trying not to startle what he guessed was vault security. "I asked for entry, and it was granted."

"Nobody enters the vault." The security guard told him, clearly not believing a word the outsider was telling him. "No one ever enters. No one ever leaves. That especially includes outsiders."

The security guard then looked down his sights and put James' chest in the center of his iron sights.

James couldn't help but dread in his thoughts. He had made it so far. He had entered Vault 101. Thought that he had gotten his daughter to safety. Escaped the dangers of the wasteland. But just when he thought that everything was going to turn out all right, things just turned bad. Just like in the wasteland.

James heard a shot fire off, and upon reflex, he grabbed his infant with both hands, shielding her as best he could with his arms as he turned his back towards the security guard. Another shot fired off. Then another. Then another. Then fired some more.

James had expected to feel the excruciating pain of a bullets pass through his flesh, but nothing happened.

The wastelander looked down, and saw that he was all right, that his daughter was all right. Safe and sound and free of blood and shredded organs. James breathed a sigh of relief that nothing had happened to his daughter. And to him as well.

But then another thought occurred to him. The security guard had fired off at least a magazine of rounds, and yet, here he was, alive and uninjured. Was the guard just that bad at aiming? Or had something else happened?

The scientist turned back towards where he had last seen the guard, and saw that the guard was laying on the floor. Red liquid was splattered all over the floor around him and the door and walls behind him. Brown-red brain matter and fragments of skull littered the floor.

To the no headed guard's left stood another man. He had dark brown skin with greying hair. His jumpsuit was the same as the security guard's, a touch darker then blue with double yellow lines on either side of the zipper that rounded at the neck and shoulder area. He had the same dark combat boots tucked in as well as a ten millimetre handgun in his right hand. The only things missing were the black kevlar vest, extendable baton, and riot helmet.

"Hope that doesn't attract too much attention." The man with the smoking gun said before he turned his eyes towards James.

Even though James didn't even know the man, James could see that he was also thinking about wither he should shoot him or not. "You say that you can be our physician?"

James then knew that that man was the one that had opened the vault door and let him enter. The man in front of him must be the one in charge. But James didn't breathe a sigh of relief, because there was still the possibility of getting shot and he knew it.

"Yes." James answered.

"How knowledgeable are you in the field of medicine?" The man in the jumpsuit asked.

"I can do just about anything." James answered, telling the man almost what he wanted to hear. He knew that he'd have to play his cards right if he didn't want to end up dead. "I can't cure additions or purge radiation completely, but I can lessen them."

The man with the gun continued to look at him, like he wanted James to continue. To tell him more. "I can do just about everything else though." James concluded, hoping that it would be enough to satisfy the one that was going to determine him and his daughter's fate.

The vault man continued to stare at the wastelander, and James started to get nervous. He started to think that he should of just lied and said that he could do anything and everything, just to get on the man's good side. If there was a good side to the man.

The man then holstered his pistol before he talked again.

"It's far better then anything we've had in a long while." James then breathed a sigh of relief as he discovered that he wasn't going to be killed. "Now then," The aging man sighed as he looked at the body of the fallen officer. "We're going to have to make up a cover story about all this."

"About the fallen officer?" James asked, looking at the headless body of a man.

"And the appearance of you and your child." The man told him. "We're a tight nit community, nearly everyone knows everyone, and two new faces are going to raise questions."

James nodded, knowing that he'd have to think of something for his sudden appearance and the disappearance of the dead man.

Several moments of tense silence occurred before anyone of them spoke again. "Officer Kevin Miller was killed by radroaches. A whole swarm of them." The man said. "And you boy, got lost in the reactor room with your wife." A half second pause came before the man continued with his idea. "Yes. You and your wife went down to the reactor room for some privacy time. Went in deeply. Too deep. Then got lost in there before your wife gave birth with your kid there. You managed to make it back, your wife didn't."

James didn't think that many people would really believe that explanation, but he didn't have anything better to go off of, so he just agreed with him, before voicing his opinion.

"But won't some people not believe it?"

The man tisked before he continued.

"If there's one thing you'll learn in here boy, it's that people won't openly question me. If you and I both say that you were lost in the reactor room, you were lost in the reactor room. If people press you for details, you make something up and keep with it. People will eventually forget about it and you can move on with your life."

That sounded a little far fetched in James' opinion, but who was he to question this man. He'd just have to hope that he was right and that he could keep up with the lie.

"Who are you anyway?" James asked.

It was then that the man smiled and said to him.

"My name is Alphonse Almodovar, though from now on, you will be calling me overseer. And the first thing you need to know about your new life is that I control everything that happens in Vault 101."

"Everything?" James asked.

"Everything." Almodovar confirmed. "Now help me get rid of this pile of flesh. And after that, clean up this mess."

**A/N: I really have no idea if other people have written the same thing as I am right now as I don't read too many fallout fics, but this is something I've thought about for a while.**

**Good, bad, or indifferent, feedback is always welcome.**


	2. Chapter 2

Early in his career as Vault 101's physician, James noticed that while the residents had been wary of him. Suspicious even. Even after him and the overseer had told the lie that they had made up, it still took a while for the vault citizens to warm up to James.

James hadn't expected them to believe that him and his wife had gotten lost and given birth without anyone remembering who they were, but it was the best that he got. And just as expected, people had mixed reactions about it. Older residents weren't sure they recognized him, the ones around his age had the same reaction, and the younger ones, while also not recognizing him, didn't seem to care as much.

A year had passed since he had started practicing his medical skills on his new patients, and while there were still some faint shadows of doubt in their minds, the thought hardly surfaced anymore. Not since James had earned their trust with his medical practices.

They trusted him enough to let him heal their wounds and to let him take care of their children when they were in need. James sometimes wondered if it was because they had no other choice but to let him clean and bandage their injuries rather then them really trusting him. But in the end, he decided that it didn't really matter. They were no longer openly casting out their suspicions of him, and that was good enough for him.

Even the older vault dwellers, the ones that had lived and remembered a time before Almodovar was overseer. A time where they were allowed to go outside the vault in search parties. Even those people had stopped pestering him about his history, though he suspected that they already knew the truth and just didn't say it. He wished that he could talk about the outside with those people, but he had to keep his cover.

The only one that he knew that he had to worry about was Almodovar, who kept a close eye on him. Watching him like a bird of prey that was ready to swoop down if James gave out any signs of weakness.

James may not of liked the way Almodovar was running the place, but he knew better then to talk back to the one holding all the power, and security, in his hand.

Even so, he was looking after the overseer's sick wife, because as a doctor, he put his personal feelings behind for the patient. It was the job that had gotten him into the vault, and it was the job that he was going to do until it was time to move on.

And James knew that the time to move on wasn't going to be for a while. A very long while.

"Come on over here, Lucy. Come on. Walk to daddy." James said to his one year old daughter.

He was inside the playpen that he normally kept Lucy in when he was busy with his work. It was one of the three main options that he had when dealing with Lucy. He wanted to spend as much time with her as possible, but when duty called, he was forced to comply.

James didn't know much on how to raise a kid. On his own, he was completely lost and would of loved the advice of his wife, Catherine. But in her place was the advice of other vault mothers and fathers, some of which were better then others. James tried to distinguish the good from the bad as best he could.

He watched as his young daughter, who had the same bright red hair as her mother, started to walk towards him.

It was awkward steps that she was giving out. Her hands were stretched out to her sides, balancing her out as best they could as she attempted to walk upright.

James kept on encouraging her to move forward one step at a time, to find her balance, to not be afraid. And with each step that his little girl took, he was filled with joy that she was taking her first steps on her own.

James thought she was doing a fantastic job, until she fell on her face after the fourth awkward step.

As her face made contact with the hard floor, James feared that he heard something snap.

Horrified, and scared that something had broken, James ran over to his daughter and picked her up as she started to cry out in pain. And James couldn't blame her, as he picked her up, he saw twin red lines of thick liquid run out of her nose. "It's okay." He told his daughter, who continued to cry out and hold her nose. "It's all right." He said as he started to wipe the blood off with a spare tissue that he kept in his pocket in case of an emergency involving Lucy.

The vault doctor then began to expertly wipe his daughter's nose with the tissue, taking away most of the crimson blood and watery tears off her face. "It's just a little accident," He assured her. "That's all."

He had been so proud of her, for some reason, feeling that today was the day that she would start walking on two feet instead of crawling around the vault on four. He wondered why he had felt that way and why he had trusted it so much. Lucy had been having trouble walking for a while, and while she had been making progress, she didn't seem to be learning as fast as the other kids around her age.

James sighed, thinking of how foolish he was to of been that big of a distance from Lucy. He hadn't been close enough to catch her in case she feel, and had paid the price for it. His daughter for some reason seemed to attract injuries to herself like how corpses attracted flies and scavengers, and that worried him. It worried him a lot.

Getting injured was part of a normal childhood, a couple scraps and bruises were to be expected. But Lucy seemed to put the effort into getting injured at least every couple of days. Or on really bad weeks, everyday.

Luckily for her though, he was a doctor that knew what he was doing.

He felt her nose, and was relived to find that it wasn't broken, just injured.

The bleeding stopped soon after. "I'm so sorry Lucy." The father told her with sadness in his voice as he brought her in for a hug. "I shouldn't of been that far away from you. This is my fault."

"Da." Lucy said, almost like she had already forgotten all about the pain she had just experienced. It was always a wonder to James how she could be that tough, or at least stop crying that fast. When other kids got hurt, they would often cry for a couple to several minutes at least. Lucy on the other hand stopped crying in nearly half the time the other kids did. He often wondered if it was the wasteland blood inside her that caused that.

James couldn't help but smile at his daughter's voice. It had taken her nearly ten months for her to say even that. Most of her other words before had been unintelligent words, but he could still tell that they were still words. The first time she spoke clearly though, that nearly brought tears to his eyes.

James picked her up gently and carried her to her playpen, set her down gently, and closed the small plastic door that was still, but only now slightly, taller then his baby. "Now you know that I don't like leaving you alone kiddo, but I need you to look after yourself for a few moments while daddy runs over to his office. Just stay here and don't hurt yourself."

Lucy had listened to what her father was telling her to do. Or really, just listening to his voice and not really understanding what he was saying to her. All she knew was that she wanted to go towards him. So she went towards him.

She wanted to walk on the flats of her feet and not crawl as the metal plates on the floor were cold and it rubbed her clothes uncomfortably against her knees. She decided long ago that she didn't want to feel the uncomfort of crawling anymore and had attempted to walk.

Time and time again though, she failed to walk like her father, and every other big person around her. But she continued to try and walk on her own two feet without assistance.

Her desire to stand upright was only further encouraged by her father's actions. He walked on his own two feet and assisted her on standing up and holding her up, steadying her when she took clumsy steps forwards. Catching her as often as he could.

She got hurt a lot, and her dad was usually there for her in her time in need.

That was why she didn't like him leaving. He was always there to help her when she got hurt. Even though she truly didn't understand it herself, a part of her knew that she was dependent on him and that she needed him when she gets injured.

So when her father walked out that sliding door before it closed behind him, she felt alone and lost. She didn't know what to do. There was almost someone that was around her, and the few times that she was alone felt strange. Scary and strange.

The little girl didn't want to be alone. She wanted to be with someone. Because the world around her was confusing and scary when she was by herself.

She looked around the room and saw the navy blue, rectangular box that had her companion inside. It had Chief Dragfoot inside.

The bear had gotten that name because he had been the leader in his group of bears, and because he couldn't walk without the help of Lucy. But his feet still dragged on the floor.

Lucy couldn't help but feel proud of herself that she was getting better at walking while Chief Dragfoot was still dragging his feet along like he always did.

She wanted to be with him, so Lucy pushed herself up until she was up on her two feet then took a couple of small steps towards the plastic playpen door, not in the least discouraged about her earlier blunder.

She made it to the playpen door, and pushed on it. The only thing that she accomplished was rattling the barrier that separated her from the rest of the room, and her companion.

Lucy shook the barrier again, to no avail. She shook it harder, and again, nothing changed. She was still trapped and Chief Dragfoot was on the other side of fence.

Frustrated, the little girl gripped the honey combed fence violently pushed and pulled at the door in front of her. Her actions only caused the entire structure to shake, bringing her no closer to her goal then she had been moments ago.

Irritated and enraged that she couldn't get out of her prison, Lucy slammed her head onto the plastic. The attack hurt her enough that she could feel it, but not enough that she'd cry out in pain. She looked to see if anything had changed, and yet again, the gate was still in the same shape that it had been before she had hurt herself. The same.

Lucy clinched her teeth together in anger, feeling the emotion build up in her chest, before she started to do the first thing that came to her mind. She started to climb the fence.

Her small hands reached up and managed to grab the top of the fence before placing her feet into the hollow honey combs one at a time. She the proceeded to pull herself up, using her arms as a way to raise herself and her feet to keep her from crashing to the ground for the second time today.

With her prison walls being only slightly taller then herself, Lucy managed to quickly get her body to the top before she started to swing her left leg over the top of the wall. Then just as quickly, she lost her balance as she felt her right foot suddenly slip out of its holding. With the combination of both her feet not holding on to anything, the momentum of her falling body, and the general scare of the situation, Lucy's hands loosened their grip for an instant. It allowed gravity enough time for her to crash to the ground like a boulder.

Excruciating pain rippled through out Lucy's body as she howled out in misery.

At that moment, Lucy wanted her dad to return to her and hear his calming voice. She wanted him to hold her and be close to him and feel safe again.

But her dad didn't return, and though she was still in pain, Lucy remembered that there was someone else in the room that would hold her. Chief Dragfoot.

Lucy then stopped crying, though she still gave out the occasional single sob, pushed herself up, and started to walk and fall towards the chest.

She didn't let her fall discourage her, because with each step towards the chest, she got closer to her companion.

Lucy managed only two or three awkward steps before she fell, but she kept on getting up and walking again. She really wanted to get to her companion, and was going to do with without crawling, because crawling hurt her knees and she was already in pain from falling from the playpen fence and falling from attempting to walk. She had already forgotten about the former.

It seemed to take a lifetime to the little girl, but she managed to make it to the chest, where she was able to reach up and lift herself up until her stomach was level with the upper edge of the navy blue box filled with toys.

It wasn't filled up very much though, only having four items inside. The items consisted of a baby rattle, but Lucy liked to think of it as a music maker. A cube that had several different colours on each side that Lucy liked to push around. A miniature race car that Lucy liked to also push, or throw, around. And finally, the last thing inside the chest was a brown, stuffed bear with black buttons for eyes. The one that Lucy called Chief Dragfoot.

Lucy saw him in the far left hand corner, and started to reach for him. But she couldn't reach him. Lucy then extended her arm, but still couldn't reach him. She then started to lean her body forwards, but still couldn't reach him, all the while grabbing the air in front of him.

Lucy, really wanting to hold her companion, continued to reach out until she started to lose her balance and fell straight into the chest. Her thighs scrapped the edge of the open chest, causing her to cry out in pain. But some of the pain disappeared as she saw her brown bear in front of her.

She grabbed the bear and hugged it tightly, loving the feel of the soft fabric on her fingers and body.

James returned to his daughter's play room with new dread on his mind.

According to his time sheet, he had to see the overseer's wife again, and he knew that he wasn't going to enjoy his time there. He and Almodovar never did get along on the best of terms, and he wondered what they were going to argue about this time.

Most likely it was going to be about his dying wife. And while James knew exactly what it was like to see your wife dying right in front of you, he still couldn't get over his dislike of the overseer.

The overseer's wife had a disease of unknown origins. Stuff like that on the outside was such a common occurrence that James wasn't even fazed by the discovery. The vault dwellers on the other hand took it with much more shock.

And while he didn't know what the disease was, he knew that it was fatal, and it wasn't a matter of if the overseer's wife was going to die, it was a matter of when. It was not the thing that Almodovar wanted to hear, no matter how many times he tried to tell him that there was nothing that he could do.

James sighed as he looked back up and saw that his daughter was no where in sight.

The place was exactly the way he had left it, with the playpen closed and everything, but somehow, his daughter had escaped without even opening the door.

There was only one thought forming in James' mind. "How?" He quickly asked before an even bigger thought occurred to him. "Where is she?"

James started to look around, and quickly found his daughter trying to climb out of the toy box while holding onto the stuffed bear that was occasionally dragged around. Instant relief washed over the worried father as he smiled, walked over to his little girl, and picked her up while chuckling. "You are quite the little explorer, aren't you? Serves me right for trying to pen you in."

She really wanted to explore the world, not be locked up like an animal. Though he thought that it was ironic that she was going to be locked up her entire life. Locked up in this vault and left to die without seeing the outside world, and thinking that there was nothing outside the vault thanks to the propaganda that the overseer feed to everyone.

Sad as it was, he thought that it was for the better that she shouldn't know what was out there in the wasteland. The vault was going to be her home, and her death bed. But she'd have a life to live, something that she'd probably not have on the outside.

James pushed those thoughts from his mind as he thought of his beloved Catherine. "Your mother would of be so proud of you."

James then set his daughter down gently on the floor as he faced her towards a framed print out of text. "See that? That thing right there?" He asked while pointing to said print out.

He saw his daughter look at the framed text before he continued speaking. "That right there was your mother's favourite message. It's from the bible. Revelations 21:6. I am Alpha and Omega. The beginning... and the end. I will give unto him that is athirst of the fountain of the water of life, freely."

The same copy of the revelation was framed and hung from his office, reminding him of both his wife and Project Purity. Both of them were some of the biggest things that had ever happened in his life. To him, they were more then just words. They were things that always lingered in the back of his mind, talked to him, reminded him of the good and bad that had came out of them. "She always loved that."

He looked down to see that Lucy wasn't even looking at the words anymore, and he was pretty sure that she didn't understand them as well. Not that he would expect his one year old to understand what was so special about it.

All she needed to know was that it was her mother's favourite saying. To her, it would be the only thing she'd know about her mother other then that she had the same ginger hair as her.

James gave out a little chuckle. "All right," He said as he stood up and took his daughter's right hand in his left. "Let's go see if your little friend, Amata, wants to play."

Even though him and Almodovar didn't get along with each other, their daughters seemed to have the opposite problem. They got along fabulously. Or as close to fabulously as you could get.

James seemed to take note that Lucy seemed to be jealous of Amata because of the simple fact that she could walk on two feet relatively well without any support. Lucy would always give her a look that reflected envy, and maybe a bit of hate, whenever Amata would stand and walk around her.

James couldn't help but give a little laugh. Maybe that was why Lucy tried so hard to walk, and get injured so often by doing so. She wanted to be like Amata. Though her jealously had gone a little too far one time when she pushed Amata to the ground. He had been sure to chew his daughter out for that, trying to explain to her that pushing other kids around was wrong and that she shouldn't do it again.

He didn't want his daughter to grow into a bully, but at the same time, he wasn't sure that she understood what he was saying. He hoped she was, but communicating with someone that couldn't talk was a challenging.

He hadn't seen, or heard of any recent reports of Lucy pushing around Amata, and that gave him hope that she did understand what he was trying to tell her.

As he guided his daughter out of their living quarters, he noted that while Lucy was having trouble walking on two feet at one year old, he wasn't too worried, she was still in the normal walking age and had two months left before she'd be getting out of the normal range.

There was nothing to worry about. She's just learning. That's what James kept on telling himself as he and Lucy walked over to the living quarters of the overseer, his wife, and Amata.


	3. Chapter 3

Do as the overseer tells you to do. That was one of the absolute laws in Vault 101.

James still hadn't grown to the totalistic state of the vault, and hated that if the overseer told you to do something, you did it, no questions asked. Obey the overseer, just like those damn propaganda posters advertised.

It was common practice for the vault residents as they had seemed to live their entire lives in that kind of government. And he knew that it was just a matter of time before his daughter started to act just like everyone else trapped within the walls of Vault 101. Obeying Almodovar without question. To his face at least.

James had learned from some of the older vault dwellers that the vault hadn't always been sealed shut. That the previous overseer had allowed them to travel out in packs into the Capital Wasteland.

But then that overseer had disappeared within the wasteland and Almodovar was voted into power. Since then, he put in the no one ever enters and no one ever leaves policy in effect.

It had happened around a couple decades ago, give or take, so the only people that could actually remember those events were the elderly, and they were fading, along with the overall population.

The doctor had noticed quickly in his entry that there wasn't a big gathering of people in the vault. Probably due to the fact that none of them had given birth to anyone outside of the vault in nearly two centuries. At that note, James wondered how many of those people were related to each other and how closely related everyone was.

But despite those facts, James still never lost sight of what was important to him. Even though he didn't like the way the vault was run, he tolerated it because of his daughter. If he wanted her to continue to live in this place, then he'd have to continue to live under their rules. To play by their rules.

And while he knew the difference between what freedoms he had in the outside world, Lucy didn't. To her, life was just as normal as could be.

At three years old, Lucy was walking on two legs and starting to form words and simple sentences. But even though she was accomplishing all that, the father noticed that she was still behind on mental development. Because for all that was doing, that's all she could do, simple sentences.

And while he was worried for his own safety, he was also worried about Lucy's safety and well being, because while he had done his best to teach his daughter that pushing Amata and other kids around wasn't allowed, her anger still got the better of her sometimes.

For a time, James thought that it was just simple anger that his daughter harnessed. But he eventually discovered that it was more then just anger that she had trouble with.

Lucy had trouble controlling all of her emotions. She had trouble controlling herself with whatever she was feeling. Be it anger, sadness, or happiness. She would sob uncontrollably, squeal in delight, shout in fear, and do whatever else she was feeling at the time.

Normally it wouldn't of been a problem, and James would of thought that it was just a kid growing up, but his daughter just lashed out with whatever she was feeling. Period.

He worried that her lack of control would get them both on the overseer's bad side.

Almodovar had the entire security force on his side, and the power to send them back out into the wasteland if he deemed so. Though more than likely, he'd put a bullet into his skull at the very least. At the worst, he'd put a bullet in his skull as well as Lucy's.

But at the time being, Lucy was getting along with Amata, keeping on good terms with her. If anything, they seemed to of gotten closer to each other after Almodovar's wife died. Wither they knew that or not was unknown to James.

James was just glad that Lucy had someone to be with other than him. Lucy would need to learn to be social, and there was only so many things that he could teach her.

He could tell her everything that she needed to know, but she needed the experience things for real in order to really get them.

The other important thing to James was Project Purity.

Even after three years he still continued to work on it. Even after taking Lucy away from the wasteland and leaving Madison Li, he had never stopped working on it. The revelation hanging in his living quarters and in his office kept on reminding him of his late wife's wishes. And his.

So in his free time, he continued to experiment with the various chemicals and equipment that the vault had to offer. And while it wasn't the extensive lab that he was used to working with, he used what he could, finding new ways to think and having to work around what short comings he ran against.

New formulas came up, new ways of looking at his experiment equipment, new ways to use limited resources. It was hard, but James was determined to complete his goal.

He kept it a secret though, because what he was doing wasn't allowed in vault society. Overseer's rules, plain and simple.

And when the overseer had discovered his covert experiments, he was instantly confronted at the worst possible time. Almodovar's wife had died just weeks prior to the discovery, and Almodovar blamed him for his wife's death, even though there had been nothing that James could do about it.

"These's 'experiments' are a waste of time." Almodovar had told him, clearly not hiding his disgust with the word experiments. "You are to see to the health of my residents and do what needs to be done to make them better, nothing more, nothing less."

"Don't be a damned fool." James replied. "We experiment to prepare. We prepare to survive."

"And we're surviving just fine the way we are." The overseer said to him. "Course. There are some people that could of put in more effort to ensure the survival of our residents." There was no hidden hate in his words, and James knew that those words were directed at him and him alone. "Don't think that you're invincible just because you're a physician. Accidents do happen."

The threat was clear. Don't fuck with the overseer.

But even with the threat of death or banishment looming over his head, James continued to experiment and continued on with Project Purity, even when the overseer assigned him an assistant shortly after.

His new assistant was a dark skinned kid with black, thick framed glasses. At sixteen years old, he had just completed his G.O.A.T test and had been assigned as a medical technician due to the results of said test. Though James wondered if Jonas Palmer's test really assigned him as a medical technician, or if the overseer had deliberately placed him there to keep an eye on him.

After all, the timing couldn't of been more perfect. Discovering unallowed experiments, the death of his wife, it didn't seem like a coincidence to the vault doctor. But wither it was because of the test or the overseer's will, James decided to play along.

Let the overseer put a spy in his work place, he would find nothing to report back to the overseer, and James would be free to act. Or as free as he could get inside the vault that felt more like a prison than anything else.

Jones could snoop as much as he wanted, but he wouldn't find anything. There would be nothing to report back to the overseer.

And so far, James seemed to be doing a good job of keeping his Project Purity experiments a secret. The overseer may of found out about them once, but it had only taught James that he should be more careful, more cautious, and kept his experiments more hidden than they already were.

He didn't let anyone onto them. Not even his own daughter, because who knew if she'd say anything about those projects that he did. One little slip up, and it would be the end of Project Purity, his life, and probably his daughter's life as well. It had to be kept a secret, from everyone.

As far as anyone could see, Jonas was his assistant and was learning everything that James could teach him.

And while James kept an eye out for Jonas trying to find out anything about him, they had quickly formed a friendship among themselves.

James discovered that the boy was smart and kind along with also being good humoured, making him an excellent assistant and an all around good person to be around.

It came to no surprise that he got along with his assistant, but it was a bit of a surprise that he got along with Lucy as well. James had thought that Lucy might have temper tantrums with Jonas, but it turned out to be different from what he had expected.

It turned out that Lucy was actually good with Jonas. She didn't yell or try to hit him or anything. James then started to think that someone that got along well with his daughter couldn't of been too bad of a person.

**A/N: I guess you could call this chapter and the last two kind of ****prologue**** chapters of a sort. Hopefully the next chapter and ****onwards**** will be less of a history speech and more of a story.**


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